Can South Africa redeem their pride in remaining two T20I matches?

Through this month, South Africa have been caught in a rut, wherein injuries, experimentation, lack of ability against spin and Kohli’s batting prowess have pounded them repeatedly.

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Feb 20, 2018, 11.29 PM IST

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By Chetan Narula

It is easy to read Virat Kohli’s body language. It’s stuck in the same gear, intensity bursting through every pore on his body, and he, it seems, doesn’t know any other way. Whether surrendering the series 2-0 in Centurion or getting one back at Wanderers thereafter, the Indian skipper shoots from the hip. Sure, it’s not the same for everyone.

Look at Faf du Plessis’ demeanour after India won the third Test on a raging green top. Never mind that South Africa had just beaten the world’s No.1 Test side 2-1, the Proteas’ captain was on the back-foot, having to defend his tactic of ordering certain preparation when it came to wickets in this series.

There is a prevalent school of thought here that South Africa made an error in affording bowler-friendly wickets to India, whose bowlers went on to take 60 wickets across the Tests.

“They tried to doctor pitches during the Test series and it almost backfired on South Africa. They could have easily lost 2-1,” said Ray Jennings, former South Africa coach.

But this isn’t about the longer format anymore. Instead, that Indian victory underlined a tectonic shift in confidence and handed the visitors vital momentum heading into the ODI series, which the visitors won 5-1. And India, currently leading the three-T20I series 1-0, are looking to wrap up another series win today at Centurion.

“The selection policy has been a disappointment. They say they are preparing for the World Cup. But with the series lost, has that experimentation worked? And if it doesn’t work, will you chuck out all new players? You have to find your best eleven at all times and develop a winning culture, match by match and series by series,” Jennings said.

The primary reason why South Africa couldn’t field their first-choice eleven throughout this limitedovers’ engagement was injuries. Du Plessis, Quinton de Kock and AB de Villiers (played last three ODIs but subsequently ruled out of T20Is) were absent. Then, of course there was the spin factor. The Proteas managed to win one ODI wherein rain essentially reduced it to a T20 contest. In other five matches, when they needed to show resolve and stay at the wicket to build innings, the hosts came up short. And that is an understatement.

“I think our surfaces have flattened a bit and behave differently now to how they behaved when I was playing. In those days, conditions of pace and bounce weren’t too hard to get,” opined Shaun Pollock, former South African skipper.

Thirty-three wickets in six matches for the two wrist spinners on their first tour here? Kohli’s Bradmanesque form of 558 runs in six matches? His words could have been a fitting answer to either query. Yes it cannot be denied that India made the best of conducive conditions since the third Test, more so in the ODIs wherein their spinners found ample assistance.

At the same time though, the same conditions couldn’t have been too tough for more experienced South African batsmen. Du Plessis showed the way with a pragmatic hundred in Durban, just that he wasn’t there to do it again and again (owing to a finger injury) like Kohli did for India. Shouldn’t another batsman have stood up, say Hashim Amla?

He is a world-renowned batsman for his skill, both against pace and spin. Yet he scored a mere 154 runs in six matches, 71 of them coming in a single innings. Furthermore, he was dismissed within the first 10 overs in five of six matches, exposing the inexperienced middle-order to the dangers of wrist spin. And this wasn’t the only shortcoming.

“There is no reason to believe why Hashim couldn’t have led the side. If Faf gets injured during the World Cup, I would expect either him or AB to lead instead. You cannot turn to someone like Aiden Markram. I was the first one to see leadership potential in him when I handed him the Under-19 captaincy. But at the international level, you need to be stable in your game before it happens. Like Kohli,” said Jennings.

Through this month, South Africa have been caught in a rut, wherein injuries, experimentation, lack of ability against spin and Kohli’s batting prowess have pounded them repeatedly. To borrow from Shane Warne, it is almost like the hosts have played the same game again and again, and only found different ways to lose.

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of www.economictimes.com.)